COFFEE SHOP - A SasuSaku FanFic (One Shot)
by AriannJS
Summary: Sakura chuckled and enveloped Sasuke in an embrace. "In the end, it's still you and me." "Hn. And it all started in this place."


He was so bored. He already finished his homework and even reluctantly resorted to reading about their next lessons in advance. And now, he had nothing else to do.

_Why does nii-san need to have extended hours at work?_ He sighed. He absolutely loves talking with his nii-san about random facts in life that he, as the younger one, could learn to apply eventually. There was never a dull conversation with his brother, that's why it irked him how he's not yet around although he said he'll be home by dusk.

He had his chin on his hand, brows furrowed while he's slumped forward on the table at his usual spot, the far corner of the room that almost seemed to be signed by his name. Puffing his cheeks, he shot a glance at the door for the fourteenth time. Yup, he was counting, because he would point that out to nii-san while yelling at him about how it sucked to be waiting for him for so long before he returns. But, much to his dismay, no Itachi appeared up until now.

While his charcoal eyes were fixed on the glass door, a pink-haired woman gracefully pushed it with her hand and entered their coffee shop, earning a cheery welcome greeting from his mother who was used to doing the same thing to every customer that comes to their place.

That's when he didn't know what came over him. His eyes were wide at the sight of those shining orbs that were as clear as emeralds, and his mouth was slightly parted with the effect of the wind that made the woman's pink locks flow with it. For some unknown reason, he couldn't help but follow her with his gaze as she proceeded to the counter to relay her order.

_Is this what nii-san calls a crush?_ He wondered.

_"So, nii-san, what should a guy do when he has a crush?" He asked his older brother one time._

_"Well, the guy should be really nice to the girl, and perhaps even give her a flower or some chocolates to make her feel special."_

A flower, huh?

In no time, he rushed to their garden located behind the coffee shop and carefully picked the single pristine white rose in bloom among the sea of budding plants. Mom might scold him later, but he was convinced on following nii-san's advice.

His head swiftly turned from left to right in search for the pink-haired woman that captivated his heart when he ran back inside the café. His eyes then landed on the table by the window, where the pinkette had gently placed her freshly brewed coffee beside a stack of notebooks. _Maybe she has homeworks too?_

With the white rose in hand, he bit his lip and mustered the courage to take small steps towards the direction of the lady. And when he stopped right in front of her, he couldn't help but stare in awe as he fumbled with the flower in his hand. He suddenly didn't know what to do.

Until the woman lifted her gaze from her notebook. "Hi there! Is there anything I can help you with?"

His throat suddenly went dry. The lady glanced at him with a small smile but he seemed to forget what he was there for.

"Is everything okay?"

And then he realized that he wanted to make his brother proud. He's gonna tell him tonight that he bravely approached his crush and he's already a man like him. "Uhm..." He briskly held out his hand then, earning a surprised look from the woman's green orbs. "F-for you."

"For me?" Her smile widened. She continued to observe the young boy with his flushed cheeks while receiving the flattering gift. "Well, thank you. What's your name?"

"I'm...I'm Sasuke." He avoided her eyes.

"Oh, nice to meet you, Sasuke! So what made you give me a beautiful flower?"

_"Did you give Izumi-nee flowers before too?"_

_"Yeah! A number of times, actually." Itachi smiled with a dreamy look apparent in his eyes. "The last time was when I asked her to marry me."_

_Sasuke's eyes lit up. "Does that mean that when I have a crush, I'll marry her one day?"_

_Itachi couldn't help but laugh at his brother's remark. "It's not entirely true for everyone. But who knows, fourteen years from now, when you're at the same age as mine, you might marry your crush as well."_

Sasuke tensed at the idea. But the expectant look of the woman in front of him made him scratch his head while replying nonetheless, "I want to...uh, marry you."

"Oh." The woman chuckled as she tucked some pink locks behind her hear. "I'm sorry but you can't do that anymore, Sasuke. I'm already married." There was a pout on her face as if to console the astonished boy.

Sasuke's shoulders slumped. "So I...cannot marry you?" _Is this what nii-san calls being brokenhearted?_

"Nee-chan!"

The two suddenly turned their heads to the door where a young girl around six years old, like Sasuke, was running towards their direction. Astounded, it took him a while before recognizing the same features of the new girl with the woman he was talking to earlier – pink hair, but hers was shorter and ornamented with a red ribbon headband, and green eyes, more striking and beautiful than any other eyes, even jewelries, that he has ever seen.

"Hey there, Sakura!"

When the girl stood a few inches closer to him while hugging the woman whom he now learned was her big sister, Sasuke felt a sudden world-stopping sensation that he had never felt before. His heart was weirdly galloping inside his ribcage.

For a moment, he realized that laying his eyes on this new girl had a much different impact on him than that time he saw her older version. And when she pulled away and glanced at his direction, there was some sort of an unexplainable connection with their eyes that was quite similar to what he has with Itachi. _Who is this girl and why does she have this effect on me?_

"Oh, wait! Sakura, let me introduce you to my new friend." The pink-haired woman from earlier giggled at her sister and glanced at both her and Sasuke. "Sakura, this is Sasuke. And Sasuke, this is my little sister Sakura."

"Uhm...hi," Sakura said softly, slightly leaning towards her sister as if she needed protection because of how sheepish she was.

Sasuke blinked twice and tried to speak, but no words came out as he opened his mouth and closed it again. _What in the world?_

He was saved from utter embarrassment when the older woman caught his attention and spoke again, "Also, I realized I haven't told you my name. I'm Sasuna!" She grinned at the young boy, amused with every bit of reaction he was having towards her younger sister.

"Hello...Sasuna-nee...and S-sakura."

A crimson tint appeared on Sakura's cheeks once she heard her new friend's voice. Shuffling even closer to her sister, she said, "Nice to meet you, Sasuke-kun."

Sasuke's lips formed a small smile at the sound of the honorific with his name. It was the first time that anyone actually called him that. And to him, it sounded nice. He silently declared that starting today, only Sakura would be allowed to call him that way. And he also mentally proclaimed that he was mistaken earlier about the woman he first considered his crush. "Me too, Sakura."

Sasuna smirked. She didn't expect that going to a coffee shop to unwind and wait for her husband would lead her to encounter such an adorable sight. "So, Sasuke..." The raven-haired boy turned to her. "I suppose this one's more appropriately for my sister?"

Sasuke felt embarrassed with the knowing smile of Sasuna. But, with cheeks now painted with red, he slipped his hands in his pockets, looked anywhere but Sakura, and nodded curtly at Sasuna's general direction.

Sasuna felt as if she was already seeing her six year old sister's future unfold as she smiled and handed the white rose to Sasuke, which the flustered boy then gave to Sakura.

Little Sakura went home alongside her sister and brother-in-law with a flower in hand and a very red face after that.

o - o - o

"So that's how you met mama?" There was an adorable twinkle in the eyes of the raven-haired girl in front of Sasuke.

Moments earlier, little Sarada complained about the tons of assignments she took home from the academy. It's not that she couldn't manage to finish them, it's just that she found the repetitive equations too boring to spend much time with. So, she ended up pestering her dad to tell her any story that he or Sakura liked so much.

Sasuke's lips twitched upwards as he gave his daughter a nod to answer her question.

Sarada leaned towards him on the table that used to be his haven while waiting for his mom to finish her café managing job when he was younger. "That's so cool! Did you marry mom the next day?"

Sasuke released a chuckle. "I wish. But it doesn't work that way, Sarada. There were lots of highs and lows, and we needed to grow up before that."

His daughter blinked twice while she parsed the information she received, her interest not dying down a bit. "Oh. Then..." She pouted, with a hand on her chin as she stared at a distance – a pose that reminded Sasuke of Sakura whenever she's thinking deeply, causing him to smile. "Then, Papa! Would I be able to marry my crush too?"

All the muscles on Sasuke's face tensed. Sure, he and Sakura met and felt a connection with each other at the same age as Sarada's now, but if he would be completely honest, he wasn't ready to let his baby girl go any time soon. And it might be unavoidable for him to develop a slight fury to any guy who might steal his heiress's heart from him and Sakura one day.

"You have a crush." Sasuke's voice came out in a tone that's mixed with both question and accusation.

With widened eyes and burning cheeks, Sarada waved her hands in front of her in quick dismissal. "No, no! It's not that! All the boys in school are annoying! I only mean that if I would have one." She scratched the back of her head. "Also, you and mama would surely know when the time comes!" She grinned until she saw her dad's face relax.

"Good."

"You're overprotective, Papa!" She giggled, earning an eye roll from Sasuke.

"Tch. Of course, I don't want my little girl to be taken away by any undeserving guy." He reached out and tapped Sarada's forehead with his two fingers.

Although Sarada was quite accustomed to the affectionate gesture already, she still couldn't help but jerk a little.

"Meanwhile, to answer your question, it doesn't always happen that way. But who knows, you might be able to marry your future crush too, when you don't find the need to rush." There was a slight emphasis to the word "future" that made Sarada flinch. "But for now, just wait for the Author of love Himself to write your own love story, okay?" Sasuke smiled.

Sarada beamed back and nodded at this.

"Now back to your homework." He stood up and patted his daughter's head before leaving her to check up on his wife who was busying herself with the coffee shop's inventory for the day.

He found Sakura seated on one of the bar stools on the other side of the renovated café, scribbling with eyebrows furrowed on the directory and notebooks sprawled in front of her on the high table.

He snickered at the sight. Despite having medical duties on her own clinic by day, she still takes time in doing what she can for the coffee shop business that was passed on to them by Sasuke's parents – Mikoto and Fugaku Uchiha. Sakura told him once that for her, it was the least she could do to support his career as a thriving businessman despite her being inclined to a different field, knowing that Sasuke already has several businesses that he was overseeing.

Plus, it was the coffee shop where they first met, so when she decided to personally oversee at least one of their many businesses, the cafè was her first and immediate choice.

It was heartwarming for Sasuke to see how dedicated his wife was in keeping up with the reputation of his family, not that she didn't have a topflight repute of her own in terms of medical studies, but her character and dedication were some of the many confirmations to Sasuke that Sakura was definitely meant to be an Uchiha. Having her as his wife was probably the best dream that he has ever achieved for himself.

Sasuke paced across the room and decided to approach her from behind. Slipping his arms around her waist, he peered over her shoulder to check on what she was doing. "Are you almost done?"

Slightly startled with her husband's touch, she responded, "Yeah. Just a few more items and we could go home." She smiled as she met Sasuke's gaze. "How's Sarada?"

"Well, she was easily bored again today, pretty much a lot like me." He snorted. "But she said it was only because her math homeworks were too plain for her, so much like you in that manner. Tch."

Sakura smirked. "We've made a pretty smart child, haven't we?"

Sasuke nodded with a smile. They've always been proud of how advanced Sarada's cognitive skills were for her age. And as she grows older, the distinguished characteristics she has acquired from either of her parents are slowly manifesting in her deeds and speech. It's a little funny for them sometimes that they got to see an image of their younger selves in Sarada.

Sasuke then planted a kiss on Sakura's shoulder blade. "Meanwhile, to kill her boredom, I told her about how we met."

"Oh, yeah?" Sakura suddenly cackled. "So you finally got to tell her about how you used to have a short-lived crush on nee-chan?"

Groaning, Sasuke tightened his embrace on her waist and buried his face in her hair. "Well, if I didn't notice Sasuna-nee back then, and if Hisuke-nii didn't fetch you from school and bring you here, I most likely wouldn't even get the chance of being introduced to you." He smirked as Sakura continued to laugh. "I'll always be grateful to them, that's for sure."

Sakura slightly pulled away to turn on her seat and now face Sasuke. "It's funny how our lives changed since then, don't you think? It's how we got to know that Someone was really orchestrating every single thing in the world to fall into place." She said, beaming from ear to ear while gently placing her arms around Sasuke's neck. "That day, I felt so sure, that you were made for me, and I for you."

"Hn." Sasuke had felt the exact same way, and he couldn't help but capture her lips with his as an agreement to her words. It was quick but sweet, making Sakura giggle in delight.

"But, do you remember how difficult our college years had been?"

Her husband's face went blank. "I don't even want to remember."

"Right." Sakura frowned as she relived the pain of those years without Sasuke.

It was a mutual decision. Growing up together, it was as if they were practically glued to each other that when you try to pull one of them away, the other would be inevitably wrecked, too.

It became almost too unhealthy how they depended on each other to the point of being too consumed in their own world. That's why when it was time for them to take different paths towards the courses they wanted to pursue, they knew they had to end their two-year relationship that bloomed during their Senior High School years (when Sasuke finally had the guts to tell Sakura that what he had for her was more than a mere childhood crush).

It wasn't just about the long distance caused by their different universities, nor the hectic schedules of their business and medical classes alongside various extracurricular activities, but it was about learning to let go that they may individually grow.

When their parents learned about it, they were surprised, but they agreed that it was indeed a wise idea.

Itachi thought it was so courageous of them that he viewed them with so much admiration ever since, because he saw how his brother stood firm with his decision although it was apparently not easy for him.

Sasuna felt heartbroken, thinking about how she wouldn't be able to take it if it was her who had to break up with Hisuke just so they could focus on their individual pursuits.

Nonetheless, both their families trusted them that they were already mature enough to deal with matters of the heart, even though it involved pain.

It was Sasuna who first witnessed the positive effects of the harrowing decision to her younger sister. Entering college made Sakura leave the clingy and hopeless romantic teenager behind. She grew up to be more confident in her own skin, even though she was alone and she didn't have the arm of a raven-haired guy constantly linked with hers. Her track record was a testament that she has made a name for herself in her chosen field, healing patients from various pains as her own heart slowly got healed.

Itachi had shared great reports about his younger brother too. During a batch reunion alongside their spouses and other batch mates in the academy, Itachi and Sasuna made sure to have a catch up about their siblings who had decided to cut off their communication with each other. Itachi proudly mentioned that despite being away from home, Sasuke grew up to be a very responsible man, worthy enough to take ownership of their companies even at such a young age. He also became more focused than ever, compared to that sulky and lovesick teen that was damned crazy about "keeping pests away" from his pink-haired childhood sweetheart.

Years later, their college graduations marked not only their professional milestones, but also their personal growth. And their families couldn't be any prouder.

For Sasuke, hearing about Sakura being hailed as one of the best rising doctors of their generation made him glad that they stuck with their decision. It was so apparent how Sakura had grown on her own, without him getting in the way as a distraction in pursuing the difficult career she chose. Though he was miles away, he had always hoped all the best for Sakura, even if it might not include him.

There was a part of Sakura that wished she was with Sasuke while he was slowly achieving his goals, but she knew that in one way or another, it would be difficult for him to focus with her around, just like when they were kids. And even though it was still a struggle for Sakura to stop longing for Sasuke, she found peace in believing that her Creator would not withold the best from her heart; hence, she continued to focus on her career and wait for love to come at its proper time. After all, she has always desired for Sasuke to be happy, even if his happiness wouldn't involve her.

But just when they thought they already had everything, they knew, somewhere at the back of their minds, that something was still missing.

_"Doctor Haruno!" A nurse suddenly approached Sakura's office with a panic-stricken face. "You are needed at the emergency room. Someone came in complaining about an intense chest pain."_

_"Oh? Okay then." She proceeded out of her office after the announcement, though she wondered why she had to attend to the ER when she wasn't even assigned there. Brushing the thoughts aside, she rushed to the emergency room because she knew how chest pains could lead to a more complicated situation for the patient._

_She gasped at the sight after pulling the green curtain sideways. Because there, seated on the hospital bed, was no other than the man she has painfully yet bravely decided to let go of years ago. "Sasuke...kun."_

_Sasuke, on the other hand, simply gave her a blank yet meaningful stare, as if scrutinizing every single thing about her and taking in all the changes in her after how many years of not seeing each other._

_But Sakura didn't let the previous astonishment get in the way of what she was really there for. When she came back to her professional senses, she immediately prepared to wear a stethoscope and paced towards her patient. She then asked, "What happened?"_

_There was, however, a long pause. And Sakura felt as if her galloping heart would explode the longer she hears the constant ticking of the clock behind her. "I need to know what happened so I could give y–"_

_"I realized I'm still in love with you, that's what happened."_

_She was frozen right then and there, with her stethoscope just a few inches away from Sasuke's supposed painful chest. Hesitating, she put her hand down and met his intent gaze. "W-what..."_

_Sasuke's eyes softened at the sight of the emerald orbs that he missed. He knew what he was there for, and he wasn't gonna beat around the bush before anyone decides to call him again for a business meeting or what._

_He cleared his throat, reaching out to gently grasp his doctor's hand. "This time, I hope the time is right. Sakura, would you allow me to court you again but with the intention of marrying you?"_

_With that, Sakura's pent-up tears for the past few years suddenly came rushing down her cheeks. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. But she knew those onyx eyes very well, and with the way they were staring back at her right now, she knew that there was no hint of lie in there._

_Slowly, her lips formed a smile as she gave him a nod that made him smile back. "This time, I'm not letting you go."_

And that was the beginning of their journey towards the now.

"It had to happen though. Or else we wouldn't be the man and woman that we are right now," Sakura acknowledged, still facing her husband in their dimly lit coffee shop. "There was no single day that I didn't miss you, Sasuke-kun. You remained my inspiration. I thought that as long as you're doing your best somewhere else, I ought to do my best wherever I was too."

The corner of Sasuke's lips twitched upwards. "And I never stopped loving you." He then lifted two fingers to lightly tap the pale forehead of his wife, a gesture Sakura knows all too well. "Even though I was successfully able to repress the emotion for so long, at the end of that long season, it still resurfaced above all the other things I preoccupied my mind with."

Sakura chuckled and enveloped Sasuke in an embrace. "In the end, it's still you and me."

"Hn. And it all started in this place."

"Papa! Mama!"

The couple's attention was suddenly caught by their little girl as she ran towards them with her hands seemingly clutching something behind her.

"Hey, Sarada!" Sakura stepped off the bar stool and leaned down to Sarada's level with Sasuke following suit. "Are your homeworks done?"

Sarada nodded as she smiled sheepishly at her parents. "I've just finished my gift."

Her father arched an eyebrow in wonder. "Gift?"

"Here! Happy Anniversary, Mama and Papa!" Sarada exclaimed happily as she held out her hand, revealing a paper with a drawing that was far better than her old sketches of stick people.

Her mother beamed as she received the said gift. "Aww! Thank you, dear! This is so nice!" She affirmed while scanning Sarada's drawing of their family.

Sasuke did the same beside Sakura and slowly smiled at their daughter. "Thank you, Sarada. It's beautiful."

The youngest Uchiha grinned in delight. She was glad that her parents liked her surprise gift. She almost thought she wouldn't be able to finish it within the day since her Papa was with her a while ago. "You're welcome!"

"Hmm. Why is there a fourth figure here though?" Sakura asked her daughter as her eyes trailed over the figure of a little boy with black hair and green eyes beside Sarada in the drawing.

Sarada bit her lip as her parents stared at her. Scratching the back of her head, she answered, "I...I was thinking that...maybe...Papa can give you a...younger brother as a gift?"

With that, Sasuke suddenly looked away while seemingly choking on his own spit.

Then, Sakura went home alongside her husband and daughter with a drawing in hand and a very red face after that.

o - o - o

**(c) December 2018 AriannJS**

o - o - o

_Any thoughts about this entry? Your reviews would surely be helpful to me! Thanks God bless!_

– A


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